Operations Accountant at Kerry

About The Role

• Reporting to the Greater Africa (GA) Finance Business Partner (FBP) will play a pivotal role in supporting Kerry’s Finance function deliver timely and accurate financial information and analysis to key stakeholders within the Kerry GA business.
• The Ops Accountant will assume key responsibility for financial management of Kerry’s production and operational activities in Kerry’s Taste & Nutrition business for the East Africa market and manage the assimilation, reporting and presentation of business performance in line with Kerry’s established KPIs and metrics.
• As new ways of working, Kerry processes and system changes are implemented across Kerry’s manufacturing facilities, the Ops Accountant is expected to be a strong Agent of Change and Kerry champion while balancing a strong commercial growth agenda.
• The successful candidate will also be expected to support cross functional initiatives and projects as required.
• This position is a flexing role most suited to a commercially astute and ambitious Accountant who is naturally comfortable working autonomously and acting with a high degree of stakeholder engagement and buy-in.
• The successful candidate will be a strong team player capable of demonstrating key leadership competencies and working in a fast paced and dynamic environment.

Key responsibilities

• Preparation and review of various monthly reports / metrics with a strong emphasis on monthly Volume, Capacity & Cost Base reporting across a matrix managed organisation
• Oversight of the monthly Forward Projection report, providing regional management with a real-time assessment of current month performance across multiple manufacturing sites
• Maintain Kerry’s Business Intelligence solution ensuring it operates with a high degree of data integrity
• Ad hoc analysis and reporting as required including periodic Executive Meeting analytics and presentations.
• Engaging and partnering with site-based stakeholders to foster a greater understanding and insight of key business drivers and performance
• Play a lead role in communicating, implementing, and managing continuous improvement initiatives and optimization strategies at a Country level.
• Support ad hoc regional Operational Finance initiatives and annual strategic plans to include Budgeting, Forecasting, regional cost efficiency strategies and profit improvement programmes
• Key financial partner to Kerry’s Country CAPEX programme providing financial stewardship and project management to major infrastructural and investment projects.
• Support the commercialization and introduction of Kerry product portfolios at site capable of leveraging the local manufacturing footprint and enabling Kerry’s push initiatives and commercial growth strategy.
• Stock management and reporting including stock reconciliations and control of stock write-offs.
• General ledger reviews - review and control of postings to plant cost centres.
• Engagement and partnering support of both cross functional and new to Kerry stakeholders designed to foster a greater understanding of key business drivers and performance. A core requirement of the role will be the effective channeling and escalation of local site issues to resolution while dual operating models are effective

Qualifications And Skills

• Degree in Finance, Accounting, Business or numerical discipline an advantage
• Tertiary Accounting Qualification, with/studying towards CIMA, CPA, CA or equivalent.
• 5 years professional experience in a previous operational finance role preferred. Familiarity with Quick Books, SAP and SAP implementation processes all strongly desirable
• Highly computer literate with strong emphasis on analytical skills. Candidates should be capable of analyzing and reporting on large volumes of data in a succinct and user friendly manner
• Strong project management skills essential with broad understanding of functional workings of each department within a standalone business
• Highly numerate, comfortable working with large volumes of data
• An analytical thinker capable of conveying technical information in a user-friendly manner
• Strong IT skills essential. Familiarity with advanced MS Excel functionality and systems preferred (PowerPoint, VBA, Pivot Table, power-pivot)
• Self-starter who can manage fluctuating workloads and projects using a high degree of initiative
• Strong team player with a clear focus on stakeholder engagement and solution delivery Strong communicator, comfortable interacting with confidence across a wide range of stakeholders
• Takes Personal accountability and ownership of actions to completion.